Apartheid
Task #1: The Apartheid Years
European descendants made up only a small percentage of South Africa’s population. But the whites made laws that classified people into racial groups and made it illegal for blacks to work or live in the same places as whites. Each racial group was assigned a certain area to live in. These laws were called apartheid, which is Afrikaans for “separateness,” or segregation. Black people were put in jail if they disobeyed these laws. They were given the worst places to live and were made to work in low-paying jobs. Race laws touched every aspect of social life: non-whites and whites were not allowed to marry, and some jobs were considered to be white-only jobs.
In 1950, the Population Registration Act required that all South Africans be racially classified into one of four categories: white, black (African), colored (of mixed decent), or Indian. Classification into these categories was based on appearance, social acceptance, and descent. All blacks were required to carry pass books containing their fingerprints, photo, and personal information. When the government declared a state of emergency, anyone could be stopped by police officers and held for up to six months. Thousands died in custody, often after being tortured. Those who were tried were sentenced to death, banished, or sentenced to life in prison, like Nelson Mandela.
Task #2: Freedom
For many decades, black people held protests to end the laws of apartheid (a system that isolated and discriminated against non-European groups), and sometimes these protests became violent. In 1991 the white government finally gave in. It removed the apartheid laws and allowed all South Africans to vote. Nelson Mandela, who had been in prison 27 years for fighting apartheid, was elected president in 1994.
Although the country currently faces some very serious problems such as HIV/AIDS, crime, unemployment, and corruption (dishonesty), now South Africans of all races are working together to try and improve their country. Freedom Day is a South African public holiday celebrated on 27 April. It celebrates freedom and commemorates the first post-apartheid elections held on that day in 1994.